I thought the following e-mail exchange wonderfully expressed the mindset of the modern left. I present it to you without embellishment for your enjoyment:

Dean,

I read your article on the Standard web page (“The 9/11 Generation”). Interesting. I posted a question to you there, but just in case you don’t read their feedback column I’ll ask it again directly.

I checked your bio on Wiki and noted that you were born in 1967. Given your love affair with marshal sensibilities, fervent worship at the alter of military exceptionalism and the fact that the Army is now accepting recruits up to 42 years old, I have to wonder why you haven’t signed up?

I mean we are at war you know.

Regards,

Steve Mack

I responded:

Because I have Cystic Fibrosis. Or were you just asking rhetorically?

DB

Steve shot back:

Nope, I was asking really. Didn't know you were afflicted. Sorry to hear about that.

But I'm also sorry that the neo-cons trumped up military exceptionalism to the point where they totally marginalized our allies and the non-military organizations that should have been leveraged to salvage Iraq after Saddam was overthrown. They also placed an impossible burden on the shoulders of our military by giving them a job (nation building) to which they are ill equipped to implement.

Killing and destroying are something that sometimes has to be done with grim determination. But the people who do it are people, not saints. And the people who don’t are no more nor less so.

Enjoying the intellectual banter, I tried to plumb the depth of the modern leftist’s mind:

Why didn't you say that in the first message rather than imply I was a coward?

DB

Steve responded:

The question was real, but I was also implying you are a coward. Because that's a given for the non-cons. War on the cheap. Borrow to pay for it and have somebody else fight it. And get all teary making speeches in front of friendly military audiences to document your bone fides.

Funny, I don't see the Army and Marines setting up recruiting stations in front of AEI to accommodate all of those who work there clamoring to sign up

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300 E-mails a day. I read ‘em all, respond to many. Wouldn’t have it any other way.

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